


Make Camp in my Heart

by dinahlace



Category: Glee
Genre: CrissColfer Big Bang, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-09
Updated: 2015-12-09
Packaged: 2018-05-05 18:54:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5386727
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dinahlace/pseuds/dinahlace
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When summer rolls around, Chris’s parents decide it’s time for him to have a trip to summer camp. Chris isn’t thrilled about the prospect of this new experience, but when he meets his gorgeous cabin mate Darren, he begins to think this summer might not be as bad as he thought.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Make Camp in my Heart

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! This work was created for the third CrissColfer Big Bang. It was such a fun project to work on, and the fic even has it's own artwork (which I've never had an artwork done for any of my fics before- and let me say, this first time was just marvelous!) You can view the artwork here on Valerie's page! ( http://i-wanna-be-a-klaine-ship-ranger.tumblr.com/post/132823593545/art-for-make-camp-in-my-heart-dinahlaces-fic). I really hope you enjoy <3

Chris still wasn’t sure how his parents had ended up convincing him to do this. He had gone just over seventeen years without ever setting foot on the grounds of a summer camp. And now, here he was, staring up at the huge wooden sign that broadcast that he was welcomed to Camp Redwood.

“Oh honey, don’t look so defeated! You haven’t even had a good look around or anything,” his mother said, giving his shoulders a squeeze. “I know you’re not really the outdoorsy type, but I really think this will be a good experience for you. You can learn some new skills, make new friends…really Christopher, think of all the possible new friends you’ll make! What did that flyer say…there are nearly 150 campers here. Lots of friendship opportunities.”

Chris knew she meant well. He just wondered what it was going to be like trying to make friends in a place that was totally out of his element. He supposed he’d never know if he didn’t go and find out.

“Well…in that case, I should go see what awaits,” he said, turning away from the sign and towards his mom, giving her a smile.

“That’s more like it,” she said, smiling back at him before she wrapped him in a hug.

Chris returned the hug, trying not to think about the fact that he wouldn’t be seeing her again for a couple of months. He wouldn’t say it was dependent on his family- he was a pretty independent guy. But he hadn’t ever really been away from his family for that long. And honestly, his family members were also his closest friends.

When they pulled away from each other, Chris noted that his mom had probably been thinking the same thing as him.

“You better get going. You don’t want Dad and Hannah to be missing you too long.” Chris hadn’t wanted his whole family to come along. He knew that would have just made things more difficult for all of them.

But really, why did he have to keep thinking of it as if he wouldn’t see his family again? Sure, a couple of months was quite a long time. But they did allow phone calls (from the main cabin’s phone- the campers weren’t allowed to have phones, which Chris didn’t mind all that much). Before long, he would be back together with his family, with stories to tell about all the fun times he had at camp, about all the friends he had made. At least, he hoped so.

After another quick hug, Chris was on his way to the main cabin, toting along his rolled up sleeping bag, a blanket, pillow, and over-stuffed suitcase. So he maybe (probably) had brought too much stuff. He had plenty of clothes, toiletries, pencils, pens, notebooks, and several books. His mom had insisted that he wouldn’t have time to be doing much reading or writing, to which he pointed out that their daily schedule allowed for free time. What better time did he have?

He made his way inside the large, log cabin, where dozens of other campers were getting checked in. He was promptly greeted by a bubbly woman, whose blonde hair was pulled tight into a high ponytail. She wore a dark green shirt with the camp logo across the front; three pine trees with Camp written above and Redwood written below.

“Welcome to Camp Redwood! We are so happy you’ve joined us this summer. How about we get you over here so you can get your welcome packet. We’ll have to go over a few things too. But I know none of it will be any trouble! You are just going to love it here!”

Well she was certainly…friendly. Maybe she had first day jitters too. Those kinds of jitters were prone to make your words tumble out like a waterfall.. Or maybe she was just one of those people who consistently acted like they were hyped up on too much coffee.

The woman- whose name was Bethany, according to the name tag on the front of her shirt- returned to her post of greeting incoming campers once Chris had been directed to his welcoming booth, the one for campers with a last name starting with A through C. He had barely been able to get a word in edgewise with Bethany; luckily, all the information she needed was his name.

“Welcome to Camp Redwood!” The greeting came this time from a dark-skinned man behind the A through C booth, his hair short and his smile broad. “May I have your name?”

Chris was wondering just how many times, “Welcome to Camp Redwood” would be directed his way, before he replied, “Chris Colfer.”

The man, who couldn’t have been too many years older than Chris, leafed through the stack of folders that were laid out on the table until he came to Chris’s name.

“Aha! Here we are,” He- Jacque- handed Chris a folder, which contained a camp map, an activities list, a schedule, and a lanyard which had one side that displayed his name and the other with a mini version of his schedule.

“Now, I need you to read and sign this,” Jacque said, pushing a piece of paper and a pen across the table towards Chris. It was a guidelines sheet of sorts, with rules detailing when lights out time is, what to not have at camp, and how campers should act, among other things. His signature at the bottom showed that he agreed to follow the rules and would take punishment (such as extra duties around the camp or, in extreme cases, being sent home) should it be given. Jacque gave him a beaming smile as he slid the signed form into a file folder next to the table.

“Thank you very much, Chris. We really appreciate having all of our campers’ cooperation when it comes to following the rules.”

Chris nodded, offering him a smile. He wasn’t really a rule breaker, so it was no big deal. Obviously they thought a lot of the rules here. And he supposed that had to with well nearly 150 middle and high school students running around.

“Well, as you’ll see inside your folder, you’re in Cabin D6. The camp experience you are a part of is divided into 4 groups. These include 6th and 7th graders, 8th and 9th graders, 10th and 11th graders, and 12th graders. Of course, these are up and coming grades, as you’ll be a senior next year, correct?” Chris nodded his affirmative before Jacque continued. “We think each group has it’s own needs. Upcoming 12th graders are looking into life after graduation, searching and applying to colleges and all that. We want you all to be grouped with people who share similar goals and in a similar stage of life. Of course, you’ll interact with people of all ages here! But all 12th graders are grouped together, and it looks like you’re in one of our double cabins. I don’t think your cabin mate has made it in yet, but you should go and make yourself at home, then come back to join us later for the welcoming party. But you can read all about that in your welcome packet. You’re going to have a great time here at Camp Redwood!”

And with that, Chris was on his way out to find Cabin D6. The camp owned hundreds upon hundreds of acres of land, which contained forests, meadows, streams, and a lake. It appeared that all the cabins weren’t spread too far away from the main cabin- for that, Chris was thankful. It seemed though that the cabins for his age group were the farthest from the main cabin…wonderful.

He decided that, while he was walking, he may as well check out his schedule and welcome letter.

6:30am - Optional early morning activity

8:00am - Wake up call; breakfast; prepare for the day

9:00am - First morning activity

10:30am - Second morning activity

Noon - Free time

1:00pm - Lunch

2:00pm - R&R/Free time

3:00pm - First afternoon activity

4:30pm - Second afternoon activity

6:00pm - Dinner

7:00pm - Group meeting

8:00pm - All camp meeting

9:00pm - Free time

10:00pm - Lights out for groups A and B

11:00pm - Lights out for groups C and D

Activities include: Horseback riding, fishing, archery, canoeing, hiking, ceramics, ziplining, rope courses, swimming, fencing, rock climbing, team sports (tennis, soccer, etc), mountain biking, and water sports.

Each camper will have free choice of the activities they select. However, there are limited spots per time slot and offered at a first come, first served basis. In the mess hall (the cabin where you will eat all your meals), there will be a board with all the listed activities under a heading of morning activity 1, morning activity 2, afternoon activity 1, and afternoon activity 2. In your folder, you will find four laminated nameplates. At breakfast, you will pin your name under 1 activity per each time slot for that day. Each activity will have a maximum number of campers posted next to it. Please do not try and overfill the activity slots. This will cause trouble for everyone.

During free time, campers are able to choose an activity that provides them with a bit of downtime and socialization, such as swimming in the pool, walking, and team sports. Of course, campers may also choose to spend this time relaxing in their cabin or out on Cromwell Field.

During the group meeting, the four groups will meet individually. This time may be used for socialization, preparation of upcoming events (such as karaoke night and talent shows), and whole group activities. Group meetings gives peers the time to interact with their own age group.

All camp meeting is a time when the whole camp comes together for activities such as karaoke night, dances, talent shows, and bonfires. It is a great way to end our day before campers have free time to go stargazing, participate in evening sports, or return to their cabins to bond with their cabin mates.

Camp Redwood prides itself in offering campers the opportunity and choice to participate in a variety of activities. Most importantly, Camp Redwood offers campers the experience to meet and socialize with new people, ranging in age from 10 (our youngest camper) to 63 (our oldest camp counselor)! This is a summer you will never forget!

Chris slid the paper back into his folder with a shake of his head. A summer he’d never forget? He was sure that was a plausible statement. He just wondered if he would actually hope to remember it by the time things were said and done.

—

Chris had found Cabin D6 with little trouble. As Jacque had said, it looked as if his cabin mate had yet to arrive. No matter- that meant that Chris got first pick when it came to his bed. Not that either option looked particularly comfortable. He decided on the bed that was against the right wall, with one window to the side of the bed and one window above the head. He pulled his sheet set out of his suitcase and stretched the fitted sheet over the bed before he laid the flat sheet overtop. He topped the bed off with his blanket and pillow before he started unpacking his clothes, putting them inside the provided dresser. He decided that, since there were two of them in the cabin, he could take two and the other guy he would be rooming with could have the other two. So he filled up the top two drawers and stuck his suitcase and sleeping bag under his bed.

He knew it would be a while before the welcoming party got started, so he decided that he would start reading one of the books he brought. This made the time pass quickly and, after glancing at his watch a couple of times to be sure of the time, he saw it was time to go. With a sigh, he placed his bookmark inside the book and laid it on top of the dresser.

With his lanyard around his neck and his things in place in his cabin, Chris was ready (well, as ready as he would ever be) to go join the other campers at the welcoming party. He made his way back to the main cabin, where things were set up in a much different way than before. There were small tables all throughout the area, with two chairs at each. And the place was packed with other tweens and teens. He was welcomed in by a camp counselor (not Bethany this time) and directed to go have a seat in front of the stage at the back of the cabin. He supposed this is where those talent shows the welcoming paper mentioned would happen.

Chris found an empty spot towards the back and sat down, crisscrossing his legs. He could already spot a few clusters of people that had been to Camp Redwood before, as they all were sporting Camp Redwood shirts from previous years. There were some little groups and pairs here and there as well. They could have been previous campers who didn’t wear their shirts, or they could have been friends who came to camp together. Or they could even be new friends already, after having been at camp for no more than a few hours. This made Chris suddenly aware of the empty chairs around him and the sudden heat that had risen in his cheeks. It was no matter. He had plenty of time for making friends. That’s just what he had to remind himself of.

Soon, a woman, who looked like she was probably close to the eldest camp counselor’s age, stepped up to the microphone on the stage. After giving it a few taps to grab the attention of the campers, she began speaking.

“Hello to all you youngsters! I am Ms. Cromwell, owner of our beautiful Camp Redwood! We are so excited for the summer that lies ahead of us, and we know you are too. We also know that some of you are probably nervous about this experience, as it may be a new thing for you. But that’s why we always have our welcoming party!”

Chris was still trying to get over the fact that she had referred to them all as youngsters, drifting in and out of listening to her explain the rules of camp, what all they had to look forward to, and what they would be doing tonight.

“Now, I’m sure you all noticed the tables and chairs that are set up. We thought we would try something new this year as an icebreaker. How many of you have heard the term, ‘Speed dating’ before?” She paused, watching many hands raise, including Chris’s. “Ah, excellent! Although I sure hope you haven't’ participated in one before!” She took a moment to laugh, as did the camp counselors, and a few of the campers- mostly the ones who had been there before and knew what to expect with this lady, Chris imagined- before she continued on.

“So we’d like to try out our own version. We’re just going to call it Speed Chatting to keep it simple. Now, our wonderful camp counselors are coming around with buckets. These buckets have slips of paper in them- some are red, some are blue. If you pull a red slip out, you are one of our Speeders. This means that you will be moving from table to table. Each table has a number on each side of it, as you can see. So don’t worry about figuring out what table you will move on to- you will simply go in numerical order. As you’ll see on your red slip, there is a number. This is the first table you will start out at. If you pull out a blue slip, you will be one of our Chatters. Now, this doesn’t mean you’ll do all the talking. This just means that you will be staying at your assigned table. You’ll notice that, on your blue slip, you also will have a number. That will be the table you’re assigned to for this evening.”

Chris wasn’t sure what exactly he thought of this plan. He thought it was a good idea, for those who were more social he. But…for himself? Well he was a little nervous at the prospect of meeting a lot of people in a short amount of time. What would they even talk about? What if they thought he was boring?

What if, what if, what if….

Chris pulled a slip out of the bucket and signed to himself. He had received a blue slip, which made him a little relieved. At least he wouldn’t have to keep getting up and down during this event.

“Okay campers! If you have a blue slip, I’d like you to calmly get up and find your table. Once everyone is seated, the campers with red slips may go find their first Speed Chatting buddy!”

Chris stood, making his way to his table. He got situated in his seat, making himself sit up straight rather than letting himself slump against the table. If he wanted to make friends, he couldn’t just look like an absolute lump.

Once everyone was at their tables, Ms. Cromwell said, “You’ll have 3 minutes to talk to each other, so make those minutes count. Now then…on your marks, get set, go!”

And with that, they were off on their first round of Speed Chatting. Chris’s first Speeder was a peppy blonde girl, who was a grade or two below him (according to the C below her name that denoted what group she belonged to). She reminded him of a younger Bethany. The minutes seemed to drag a bit- maybe that was because Miss Chatty (whose name was actually Jessica) took up most of the conversation talking about her years past at Camp Redwood.

When the three minutes were up, Jessica was replaced and the cycle continued. Chris had met fourteen people so far. All they really got to chat about was a brief summary of how they ended up at camp and maybe some random facts about each other. But this wasn’t meant to be a big ordeal full of long introductions- it was something short that allowed them to meet several people. He supposed it was a good thing altogether. The potential for lots of new friends, right? And a few of the people he had met seemed interesting- like Robert, who had a metal rod inserted in his leg- and nice- like Brittney, who kindly prompted Chris to talk about what made him come to camp and what sorts of things he liked to do.

“Time to switch!” Ms. Cromwell called. She no longer had to tell them to wait to start talking until she gave the ‘Go!’- they had that figured out after a few rounds.

Chris had been lost a little in his thoughts, wondering just how long they would keep this up, when he heard Ms. Cromwell call ‘Go!’ and he looked up at his chatting partner…who was definitely the cutest one he had met.

Chris realized he had been staring at him for several seconds and started blushing, laughing a little. “I’m sorry. I’m not being a very good Chatter,” he apologized with a sheepish smile.

The boy was giving him a warm smile, his golden eyes seeming to sparkle. His dark hair was a charming mess of curls that bounced as he laughed, shaking his head a little.

“Oh you don’t have to apologize, it’s fine. The routine is getting a little old already, huh? I’m Darren, by the way,” he said, extending his hand over the table.

Chris nodded in agreement, taking his hand to shake it gently as he smiled at him. “I’m Chris,” he replied, glancing at Darren’s lanyard, noting that he was in group D.

“So…have you been here before?” Chris asked. Darren lacked a Camp Redwood shirt, but he could have easily been one of the ones that didn’t wear his.

“Oh no, I haven’t. I’ve been to a couple of other camps though, usually for about a month. Never two, like this one. But I’m really excited about it,” he explained with a grin.

“Ah. So at least you sort of know what to expect,” Chris noted.

Darren nodded and asked, “I take it you’ve never been to any camp before?”

Chris shook his head and smiled. “This is the first time.”

Darren was grinning at him again, making his stomach flutter. He had a catching smile, so Chris just couldn’t help smiling back at him.

“I think you’ll really love it. It’s a great opportunity to meet new people and explore the outdoors. Well…unless making new friends and being outdoors isn’t your thing. Then maybe it won’t be so fun,” Darren said with a laugh.

“Well…I wouldn’t really call myself a social or outdoorsy person but….maybe if I meet the right person, then I can be.” Chris couldn’t believe he actually let that statement come out of his mouth, following by a shy smile and a blush on his cheeks. He noted that Darren was blushing just a little as well, his smile still bright.

Yeah okay. It was fair to say he had a little crush already. And that was definitely not what he was expecting when thinking about camp.

“So, what do you normally spend your time doing?” Darren asked, eyebrows raised slightly. Chris was happy to see that he actually looked genuinely interested, unlike some people who asked questions only because they felt like they were obligated to.

“Oh well…I really enjoy reading, listening to music, writing, watching musicals…” Chris listed off.

“I love musicals! Well, music in general. I guess that’s why I love Disney so much,” Darren said with a laugh.

Chris felt like swooning. A cute boy that loved musicals and Disney? Sign him up for the tired trope of summer love. But before he could say anything, there was a noise signaling that their Speed Chat was up and it was time to move on to the next person.

“See you after?” Darren asked, phrasing it more as an offer, a hopeful smile on his lips.

Chris found himself nodding quickly. “Yeah, definitely,” he said, watching Darren give him a thumbs-up before he slid out of his chair and moved on to his next Speed Chat.

Luckily, Speed Chatting only lasted a few more rounds before Ms. Cromwell decided that the sighing teens and tweens had had enough.

“Okay youngsters, that was our last Speed Chat of the night! I want to thank you all for participating and coming out to our welcome night. Now, I want you to all head back to your cabin and get more acquainted with your roommates before you get a good night’s rest. Wake up call comes at eight in the morning!”

A ripple of groans were heard across the cabin. Summer was meant for sleeping in and being a little lazy, not early rising and getting straight to action.

Chris sighed a little to himself as he slid off his chair, his backside sore from sitting in one spot for so long. He didn’t think too much about it though as his eyes scanned the dispersing crowd for Darren as he made his way towards the door.

“Looking for someone?” He heard a voice ask from behind him. He turned to see a smiling Darren standing there.

“Oh, hi,” he said with a small laugh. “Did you enjoy the rest of your Speed Chats?” He asked.

“I always like meeting new people, but it was getting a little old. Besides, I still haven’t gotten to meet my roommate,” Darren said as he and Chris walked out of the cabin and towards the D group cabins.

“Oh really? Neither have I.”

“I bet a lot of people haven’t. I mean, people come in at all sorts of times and everything. I hope we both have great cabin mates for the summer,” Darren murmured with a smile as he glanced over at Chris. “What cabin are you in?”

“I’m in D6. What about you?”

To Chris’s surprise, Darren started laughing. He raised an eyebrow, not sure what was so funny, until Darren turned to him and said with a grin, “Hi, I’m Darren. I’m your cabin mate for the summer!”

Both of Chris’ eyebrows shot up and he found himself grinning back at Darren before he laughed as well. “Well! That takes care of meeting our cabin mate.” Although knowing that Darren was his cabin mate made Chris’s stomach do little flips. Living in close quarters with a boy he was already crushing on? The summer should definitely be interesting.

—

The two walked towards their cabin together, their conversation turning into one about musicals and Disney, which featured a discussion of their favorite musicals and movies, as well as their favorite songs. Chris was intrigued by Darren’s knowledge of the ones they discussed, and how animated he got during the discussion. They went into the cabin together and continued talking, other topics such as careers and colleges coming up as they moved to their respective beds. Chris sat down on his while Darren made his bed before he flopped down on it.

“So, you want to do something with music?” Chris asked, lying down on his side, propping his head up with his hand.

Darren raised his head from where it had flopped down on his pillow, eyes lighting up at the question. “Oh yeah. I’m not really sure what yet. I mean, I love listening to and making music. It would be perfect for my career to be centered around music somehow.”

Chris nodded in agreement and smiled. “I love music too. I’m not really sure about a career in music though…I’m sort of thinking about writing.”

“What sort of writing?” Darren asked, propping up his own head as he smiled over at Chris.

Chris felt butterflies fluttering in his stomach at seeing the other boy’s charming, interested smile. He wasn’t used to having another teenage boy’s rapt attention.

“Well…creative writing, I guess. Prose,” He said with a smile. “I mostly write short stories but…I’d really love to write novels one day. Right now it seems like all my writing has been spent on writing for scholarships, essays for college applications, and school assignments.”

“Oh yeah, I understand that,” Darren murmured with a nod. “I mean, with this next year it’s only going to get worse. Seriously figuring out what colleges to apply to, working on big senior projects, writing all kinds of crazy things to get as much financial help as possible…”

Chris groaned, pressing his face into his hand. “Oh please, don’t remind me…senior year is going to be busy, busy, busy…but I will be so ready to get out of high school.”

“Why’s that?” Darren asked, eyebrows raised in curiosity.

“Just not a big fan of the sheep I go to school with,” Chris stated with an eye roll, earning a laugh from Darren.

“Sheep?”

“Yeah you know, they have the sheep mentality. Mindlessly doing whatever is popular or fits in with the latest fad. Going with what their friends or family say rather than thinking for themselves. That sort of thing.”

“Ah,” Darren breathed with a nod. “But you’re friends with people who aren’t like that, right?”

Chris felt his face fall slightly. While Chris didn’t have many friends, especially not ones his own age, the few friends he did have were wonderful and they certainly were not mindless sheep. He quickly recovered, giving Darren a smile.

“Right. My friends are really great. And…I’ll miss them when I go to college but…I want that new chapter of my life to get started already, you know?”

Darren nodded a little. “Yeah, I’ll really miss all my friends. And I sort of hope some of us will go to college together, or at least be in the same area but…yeah. College is going to be an exciting new chapter in our lives. Just like this summer is.”

Chris hadn’t thought of it that way before. Well…he had sort of already classified his life into different chapters, which had mostly been divided up into school rankings so far. Would this summer be so exciting that it would deserve it’s own chapter in his life?

—

“Rise and shine!”

Chris groaned, rolling over and pulling the covers over himself. He was not a morning person in the least, and he knew that it was too early for him to be up with the limited amount of sleep he and Darren had gotten last night. They had been busy chatting, not even concerned as the camp-designated bedtime had been passed-by a few hours.

Now he was being woken up by Darren, who obviously wasn’t affected by the lack of sleep. At least Darren hadn’t woken him up for the optional early morning activity- then he would certainly not be a happy camper.

“Aren’t you chipper in the mornings,” Chris mumbled, pulling off his covers.

“I take it you’re not an early bird?” Darren asked with a laugh, now sitting on the edge of Chris’s bed.

Chris didn’t know how Darren did it- managing to look completely gorgeous right after waking, bedhead curls and all.

“No, early bird would definitely not describe me. But I suppose I should be glad one of us is, so we won’t be late to breakfast and all,” He said with a wave of his hand.

Darren just chuckled in response, smiling as he patted a hand on Chris’s leg. “Well come on then. I don’t know about you, but I’m starving!”

Chris briefly wondered if he would soon find Darren’s sunny-morning personality annoying….or if it would just be added to the list of reasons he was crushing on him. Right now, it appeared to be the latter.

—

“So, what sort of activities are you interested in signing up for?” Darren asked as he and Chris walked towards the mess hall.

Chris honestly hadn’t thought too much about it. None of the activities that the camp offered were really part of his daily routine. Or monthly, for that matter.

“Well…I’m interested in trying out most of them, I guess. So…I’m up for whatever you want to do,” he replied with a smile. His smile faded quickly, his face instantly heating up. “I-I mean, uh…we obviously don’t have to do all our activities together. We’re rooming together but it’s not like we’re tied together or anything. I mean, I don’t blame you if you want to spend our days apart because I don’t want you to get tired of me or something-”

“Chris!” Darren interrupted with a laugh, putting a hand on Chris’s shoulder. “Hey, I don’t care if we do our activities together. I mean…I sort of figured we would, honestly,” He said with a shrug.

“Oh…” Chris breathed, a relieved smile on his lips. “Okay well, in that case…what do you want to do?”

“Well, I think I’m interested in pretty much all of them, so…how about we just put our names under four random activities? Try them out….if we like them, great! We’ll do them again. If we’re not fans, we know not to sign up for them again. And, if we have differing feelings…well, we don’t have to do everything together at all times.”

“That sounds like a plan,” Chris said with a nod, pulling open the door to the mess hall, holding it open for Darren to walk through.

“Why, thank you kind sir,” Darren said with a small bow, grinning at Chris as he walked inside.

Chris laughed and followed after him into the crowded mess hall. Most people were either eating breakfast or viewing the activities board, trying to figure out where to stick their name plaques for the day.

“Why don’t we put our names up on the board before we eat? That way we won’t be dead last in choosing,” Darren suggested, walking towards the board.

“Good idea,” Chris agreed as he followed him, eyes scanning over the board to see what activities weren’t full yet.

After thinking through a few options, Chris and Darren finally decided on their four activities for the day; rock climbing, canoeing, archery, and hiking.

“Now that we’ve got that settled…breakfast!” Chris said, walking towards the breakfast line, peering around the other teens to see what sort of food they could choose from. He was a little surprised to see eggs, sausage, biscuits, and fresh fruit. He supposed he hadn’t expected such a selection at a summer camp…but, as a sign over the food claimed, “A great breakfast leads to a great day!”. It only made sense to serve a hearty breakfast when they had a full day ahead, right?

After plating up their food, Darren and Chris found themselves an empty table. Chris ate his biscuit, watching Darren curiously look around the mess hall before he turned to Chris.

“ You know, this is going to sound totally lame, but…” He paused, taking a bite of his eggs, swallowing them before continuing. “I love the potential of summer camp. Looking around, seeing all the possible new friends, the idea of potentially learning a new skill or finding a new activity I love…it’s just…it’s a really great feeling.” He ended with a small smile, shrugging a little. “Like I said, I know that’s lame…”

“That is definitely not lame,” Chris said firmly, shaking his head. “That’s really…that’s a really great way to look at life, actually. Seeing the potential in all those things, you know?”

Darren nodded a little, laughing slightly. “Yeah…some of my friends have told me that my glass isn’t half full…it’s overflowing. I can’t help it. I try to be an optimist as much as possible.”

“That’s certainly a good attitude to have,” Chris noted with a smile, sipping some of his orange juice. “I have to admit…I’m more of a pessimist than anything. I know it’s not a good thing, but I can’t help worrying and griping about things.”

“Hey, I’m not saying that having pessimistic views are a bad thing. I mean, to some extent, it’s good to have worries and vent about your problems,” Darren noted.

“Yeah but…I hate that I seem to always look at the bad side of things first,” Chris murmured with a shrug.

“Well, you can always change your attitude about things. I mean…there’s only one person in life you can truly control, and that’s yourself. So…if you want to change part of yourself, then go for it.”

Chris would have to agree- Darren’s glass was certainly overflowing. Chris wondered if just being around someone so optimistic would help his optimism grow. It wouldn’t be a bad thing to test out.

“Yeah…I suppose you’re right…” Chris murmured with a smile. “You’re a pretty good pep-talker, you know?”

Darren laughed, sipping his orange juice. “I don’t know about that. Can I use music in my pep talks? That might be fun.”

“Hey, they’ll be hosted by you, so that’s all up to you. I’m sure that would make things pretty interesting.”

The two looked up when they heard a loud whistle blaring from the stage at the other end of the hall. There stood a squat, middle-aged man with sparse red hair and a large whistle hung around his neck.

“Hello campers! I am Coach Reed, one of your activity leaders this summer. I am excited to see how many of you there are this year! Now, to get down to business. As this is our first morning, we will excuse some of our late-running campers. We understand that many of you have never been to camp before, and therefore, do not really know what to expect or do not know what is expected of you. So, let me make that clear- You are expected to be on time or early for all activities or meetings. Being late holds up, not only you, but the other campers and your leaders. Even though that may sound like a stern warning…you should expect to have lots of fun here and make plenty of new friends. Now!” He paused, clapping his hands together as he smiled. “It’s about time to get started on our first activity of the day. Please make sure to grab yourself a name tag before you head out, along with a map so you can see where your activities will be located. For this first activity, you will be leaving out from here with your activity leader. So when you get finished eating, find the leader with a shirt that matches your first activity. For example, if archery is your first activity, you will be going with Lori, who has a bow and arrow on the front of her shirt. Now, everyone get ready! Your first day of activities will officially start in five minutes!”

With that, a buzz rose in the mess hall as campers returned back to conversations and hastily finished up their food before they went looking for their activity leaders.

Darren and Chris found their own activity leader, a man with a mountain and climbing gear on his shirt. A small group of campers were already gathered, chatting with one another as other teens steadily came over to join their group.

“Alright, this appears to be our lot,” the activity leader (Jim, as his name tag read) said before he started for the mess hall door. The campers followed after him, glancing around to see who was a part of their first activity group.

It was a moderate hike to where they would be practicing their rock climbing skills for the activity period- putting on their gear, learning about safety, and determining what parts of the rock were best for climbing- and which were not.

Next was canoeing. Darren and Chris shared a canoe, trying to maneuver it together, which wasn’t as easy as it seemed- especially with over a dozen other campers trying to paddle around the lake. At one point, Chris ended up splashing Darren on accident, his oar coming down too hard into the water. But Darren didn’t complain- he simply splashed Chris back, until they were warring it out with each other. Eventually, they acknowledged that the activity leader was yelling at them to cut it out. And they did cut it out, but they couldn’t quit laughing.

Archery was surprisingly difficult. Darren had only practiced it a time or two before at another camp, and Chris had never even picked up a bow before. Several campers seemed to only be able to shoot at the ground in front of them, while others would overshoot, sending their arrows flying over the target. A couple of campers got in trouble for acting like the arrows were swords. Darren and Chris couldn’t help giggling to themselves as the trouble teens made faces at the activity leader behind her back, obviously angry that they weren’t allowed to participate anymore.

Hiking was, luckily, not too strenuous. Chris wasn’t used to doing so many sporty activities, especially not all in one day.

“I don’t know about you, but I am so ready to go to sleep,” Chris sighed on their walk to the mess hall. “My legs hurt, my arms hurt, I’m hungry…”

Chris looked over at Darren when he heard Darren trying to bite back his laughter. He raised an eyebrow at him and pouted, asking, “You think my pain is funny?”

Darren’s laughter came rolling out suddenly, making Chris stop in his tracks.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Darren mumbled through his laughter, shaking his head. “Sorry, I’m just…God, I think I’m tired too. And we still have dinner and two meetings before we can even go back to our cabin. I’ve been to several summer camps before, but this one certainly makes sure you stay busy.”

Chris nodded in agreement. “We did have some rest time earlier, with lunch and our free time…but it feels like we’ve just been going ninety to nothing all day. Not that I don’t like staying busy, because I hate being bored, but…is the whole summer going to be like this?”

Darren pulled the door to the mess hall open, ushering Chris inside with a little bow. Chris laughed and shook his head, thanking him as he walked inside.

“Hopefully things will become a little more relaxed as the days go on,” Darren murmured with a shrug, sliding into the dinner line with Chris. “Normally that’s how things go. The first week or so is full of frenzied activities and meetings, but gradually, the camp leaders tend to ease up with all the scheduling. Especially with this being a two month long camp, I doubt they will keep things so strict the whole time.”

The two moved farther up in line, grabbing plates. Chris glanced over the other camper’s heads and shoulders, taking a look at the hamburgers, hotdogs, and fries they were having for dinner.

Once they got their food, Darren and Chris headed over to an empty table. Chris sighed as he sat down, resting his head against the table. “Wake me when I have about five minutes of dinner left,” He mumbled.

Darren chuckled and shook his head. “Sit up and eat. At least we’re relaxing right now, even if we aren’t sleeping. So,” he paused, taking a bite of his hamburger. “What was your favorite activity today?”

Chris hummed softly in thought as he munched on a few fries. “Probably archery. It’s one of those weird, interesting skills that would be cool to say you possess. And canoeing was fun too. Got a little more wet than I expected I would, but…”He trailed off with a laugh, grinning.

“Hey, you’re the one that splashed me first!” Darren pointed out.

“It was an accident!” Chris laughed, shaking his head. “Which, I already told you.”

“Oh, I know,” Darren murmured, grinning. “I heard it the whole time I was splashing you back.”

“You’re such an ass,” Chris huffed, unable to help smiling, though he was trying hard to scowl at him.

“It is one of my best features,” Darren murmured with a smirk, winking at Chris.

Chris’s eyebrows rose as he felt his face redden. That certainly hadn’t been the response Chris expected out of Darren. He watched Darren duck his head a little and blush as well, returning to eating. He didn’t look back up for a few moments, quietly regarding his own plate.

Chris continued eating as well, wondering just what the hell that was all about.

—

The first couple of weeks of summer camp seemed to fly by. Everyone was rushing around, trying out various activities, making the most of their free time, and attending the required camp meetings.

As the days went by, things seemed to ease up, as Darren had predicted.

First, the group and all camp meetings were cut down to only two nights a week each. As Ms. Cromwell had said, “We do not want our campers to become bored by the routine of our meetings. We want these to be fun, freeing times! Therefore, we will cut them down to only a couple of times a week.”

Next, the afternoon activities were combined into one long activity after lunch. Ms. Cromwell cited that this was done in order to “Provide a longer period for campers to enjoy their newly identified interests and hone in on blossoming skills.”

It was nice to have a more relaxed schedule. There didn’t seem to be as much hurrying back and forth as there had been the first couple of weeks. Overall, the camp atmosphere seemed to be more laid back- which, Chris thought, was what summer was supposed to be like anyways.

Despite repeatedly discussing it, Darren and Chris ended up not attending activities without each other. Each day that they picked out their daily activities there would be a pause, a moment of wondering if one would place his name tags first and see if the other followed. But, eventually, one of them would ask the other what they were interested in doing that day, or suggest what they should do for the day. No matter how it was decided, it seemed the two were doing everything together- and they were perfectly fine with that.

Of course, some new friends were made along the way as well. They met a few people in their own age group, as well as a few younger teens. They got to hang out at different activities, meetings, and meals. Occasionally, Darren and Chris would switch things up and have a different canoeing or sports partner during their activity time. Usually though, they were quick to claim each other.

Through their constant time spent together, the two steadily grew closer in their friendship. And Chris found that his schoolboy crush was quickly growing into a head-over-heels crush. Sure, they’d only known each other for a few weeks…but in those few weeks, most of their waking hours had been spent with each other.

Chris didn’t really worry about what he felt anyways. He had always known that he was interested in boys. It had been something a little hard to come to terms with in the town he lived in…but his family was accepting, and that was all he cared about.

However, he did worry about how Darren felt. Darren had never even said he was gay, or at least interested in guys in some way…There was no way Chris could just blurt out that he liked him. What if Darren freaked and Chris was left without a great new friend? He didn’t want to risk it, so he decided he would just keep his trap shut. That would guarantee their friendship with stay intact, right?

—

“So…” Darren started, laying back on his bed, tossing a hacky sack towards the ceiling.

Chris raised his eyebrows, turning his head towards Darren. He was laid back on his own bed after the two of them had returned from a rather exhausting hike.

The tone of Darren’s ‘so’ wasn’t exactly appealing.

“So…what?” Chris asked, trying not to sound as nervous about the trailed off word as he felt.

“Well…this is personal and all…but I was just wondering you know, if you had a girlfriend back home?” Darren asked, returning his smile.

Oh no. Chris gulped slightly, wondering how he had managed to avoid a question like that in the nearly three weeks they had been there. But so he had, and he had actually thought they would never discuss relationships or anything like that. Yet here Darren was, asking Chris if he had a girlfriend back home. And Chris wasn’t sure how to respond. The answer was obviously no…but what if Darren did something crazy and asked why?

“No…I don’t…” Chris started, shaking his head a little. “I uh…school and stuff takes up most of my time.” He paused a moment, biting at his lower lip. “What about you?”

Darren shook his head and Chris nearly breathed a sigh of relief.

Just because he doesn’t have a girlfriend doesn’t mean he isn’t interested in girls, Chris chided himself silently.

“I’ve had a couple but…none right now,” He murmured with a shrug, smiling. “Guess I’ve been caught up in all of that school stuff too.”

Chris nodded, sighing inwardly. Of course Darren had had girlfriends before. He was sure that girls must be vying for Darren’s attention at his school all the time.

“Sorry, I know that was random I was just…curious…” Darren murmured, smiling a little.

“Oh yeah, that’s fine. I mean, I was going to ask you if you had a girlfriend just…out of curiosity too. Not that I’ve been thinking about that a lot…it just, you know, crossed my mind…” Chris bit his lip when he realized he was rattling on.

“You don’t have to explain yourself, Chris,” Darren murmured with a soft chuckle. “We’re friends. Friends ask each other stuff to learn more about one another.”

Chris nodded slightly and smiled. “Yeah, that’s true. We wouldn’t know anything about each other if we didn’t ask questions and talk to each other, would we?”

Darren hummed softly. “Very true. And I like learning about you, so…” He shrugged a little, smiling over at Chris.

There was another of those hanging ‘so’s…but this time it made Chris’s stomach swoop and his face redden.

Chris briefly wondered if Darren could possibly feel the same way about him as he did about Darren. He decided to push that thought aside, not daring to get his hopes up. His dreams would do that enough for him.

—

“It is so hot,” Chris groaned on their walk to the mess hall for breakfast. The sun hadn’t been up very long, yet it was already roasting.

“We should do some cooling activities today,” Darren said, wiping his arm over his forehead, where sweat was already beading under his curls.

Chris nodded in agreement as they walked into the mess hall, going to get in the line for their food. “We definitely need to go swimming.”

After agreeing to make their afternoon activity swimming, when it would be the hottest part of the day, the two ate and went off for their morning activities. Once they got through with their activities and lunch, it was time to cool off in the lake.

“This water is going to feel so good!” Darren said, tugging off his shirt as he bounded down the hill towards the lake.

Chris followed after him, not nearly as enthusiastic. Sure, he was hotter than hell temperature wise but…looks wise? He wasn’t very confident with himself, especially when it came to being half-naked around a boy he was crushing on.

Darren was already splashing into the water, letting out a loud sigh of relief. “C’mon, Chris!” he called, watching him with an expectant smile.

Chris chewed on his lip, glancing down at the water lapping at his feet. He really wanted to enjoy the coolness of the water…but he didn’t want to look totally lame and go in with a t-shirt on. He had managed to get by before with going in with a swim shirt on or not going in at all. Today though, he had opted for a light tee, not liking the way his swim shirt stuck so tightly to him.

“Come on! Off with the shirt and into the water!” Darren called to him, swimming over until he could stand in waist-deep water.

“I don’t….” Chris trailed off and sighed. “This is going to sound completely lame but uh…I don’t usually take off my shirt around other people.”

Darren raised his eyebrows, giving him a sort of questioning look. He glanced at the other people out in the lake, who were busy swimming around- and, off in the distance, canoeing. He smiled at Chris as he turned back towards him.

“If you’re not comfortable with it…then you don’t have to take it off,” Darren murmured with a shrug. “But…you don’t have to feel uncomfortable. I mean…if you’re worried about your body or something, you don’t have to be. We’re both just guys going for a swim. And if it is about your body…well, mine isn’t perfect. I mean, have you seen this baby fat?” He asked, poking at his soft stomach, glancing up at Chris with a smile.

Chris chewed on his lip and smiled faintly, his face tinted red. “Okay…”he breathed softly, reaching for the hem of his shirt. He pulled his shirt up slowly, tugging it over his head and tossing it next to Darren’s.

Without a shirt, Chris couldn’t help holding his arms around his middle for a few moments, feeling unsure of himself. He slowly stepped into the water, letting his arms fall at his sides. He was thankful that the part of the lake they were swimming in was shaded by multiple, large trees. That meant that, hopefully, his pale skin wouldn’t end up more burnt than it already was.

He walked further into the lake, letting the water lap against his own soft belly, sighing softly at the cool feeling of the water.

Chris noticed Darren watching him, smiling just faintly. Chris could feel his cheeks heating up again as he returned Darren’s smile.

For the rest of the activity time, the two swam in the roped off lake water, talking amongst themselves and occasionally splashing one another.

When it was time for the afternoon activity time to end, the activity leader called for everyone to dry off and head towards the mess hall for dinner. Most of the campers splashed out of the lake, grabbing towels and walking off through the woods to go eat. Darren and Chris were slower to get out, taking their time to swim back to shore.

“Today hasn’t been too bad,” Chris said as he got out of the water, stretching his arms above his head.

“Well, I’m glad you thought my presence wasn’t “too bad” today,” Darren teased with a grin.

Chris rolled his eyes, pushing at Darren’s arm. “Ha ha, you know what I meant, asshole.”

“Hey, don’t start with that again,” Darren laughed, shoving Chris back.

Chris laughed and shook his head, sighing as he leaned back against a tree, it’s large branches hanging over the lake. “We’ve been swimming for a while, I need a break…just for a minute,” Chris murmured, tipping his head back against the bark, closing his eyes.

After a few moments, Chris opened his eyes, finding Darren looking at him with an unreadable expression.

“What?” Chris asked, raising his eyebrows and giving him a small, unsure smile.

“Oh uh…nothing,” Darren murmured, shaking his head. “I was just thinking…”

“About what?”

Darren bit at his lip and shrugged slightly, stepping towards him. “It’s nothing. Really.”

“Come on, Darren…I haven’t known you for a long amount of time but I know you don’t think about just nothing.”

Darren laughed, and Chris noticed the red in his cheeks. He hadn’t seen it often, but from the few times he had, he could tell Darren was blushing. But why?

“So maybe it’s not nothing….but…it’s something that…if…well, if it’s not okay…then it’s going to be like, horribly wrong.”

Chris thought that it was unsettling to hear Darren, usually Mr. Charming Smoothtalker, stumbling over his words and stuttering through sentences. What was with him? It was making Chris’s stomach flutter in an unsettling way.

“Darren…whatever you have to say, you can tell me. I mean, maybe I won’t like it or something but…we won’t know until you say it,” Chris murmured.

Darren sighed softly, rubbing at the back of his neck. He shook his head slightly, looking at Chris with a small shake of his head. “You know what…” he mumbled to himself before stepping forward to close the gap between himself and Chris.

Chris barely had time to take in a startled breath before Darren’s lips were on his own. The multiple thoughts that had been running through his head suddenly stopped, replaced by an airy, elated feeling.

Chris felt Darren’s hands hold gently at his waist as he moved his own hands up to Darren’s shoulders.

Their lips slid together slowly, making the few moments that they shared their first kiss feel like a lifetime at the same time that it felt like it moved by in a flash. Chris was still trying to piece together what was happening as Darren pulled away, staring at him with wide, golden eyes.

“I…I’m sorry….I shouldn’t have done that…” Darren muttered, starting to back away.

“Darren, wait,” Chris stated, reaching out to grab his arm.

Darren halted, looking at Chris with a sort of shy, confused look. “You’re not pissed at me? Don’t want to like, hit me or shove me in the lake or anything?”

Chris laughed, shaking his head. “No, Darren. Of course I’m not going to hit you or push you in the lake.”

Darren raised his eyebrows, biting his lip. “You’re not?”

“No way.”

Darren breathed a sigh of relief, smiling faintly at Chris. “Okay…”

Chris licked over his lips before chewing on his lower lip. “You know…”he started. It was his time to be shy now. “Never mind, never mind,” He mumbled, shaking his head.

“No no. I tried to nothing my way out of this, so you’re not neverminding your way out,” Darren said with a small laugh.

Chris supposed that was only fair. “That was…my first kiss…”

Darren’s eyebrows rose, a look of shock coming to his eyes. “Really?”

“I know…I’m completely lame, first kiss at seventeen and all,” he muttered with a quiet laugh.

He looked up as Darren moved closer again, his hand on his arm. “Chris…that’s not lame.”

“Well, you’ve had your first kiss already, haven’t you?” Chris countered, raising an eyebrow.

Darren sighed. “Well…yeah, but…what’s lame is that I didn’t make sure that you’d be…you know, okay with that before doing it…”

Chris’s eyebrows rose as he gave him a puzzled look. “What do you mean?”

“I mean…I…we never really talked about who we were interested in…”

“Oh,” Chris breathed, nodding slightly. “Honestly…I’ve wanted to bring it up.”

Darren’s eyebrows shot up at that. “Really? Why?”

Chris felt his cheeks heat up at the question. “Well…I’m gay…and I thought there was like…no way a guy like you could be gay.”

Chris gave Darren a strange look as he started laughing. “Sorry, I’m not laughing at you I’m just…sorry…” Darren took a moment to stop laughing, shaking his head slightly. “What makes someone seem gay or not?” He questioned.

That was a question that caught Chris off guard. “Well…I mean…everyone in my school has no problem figuring out that I’m gay. You on the other hand…I don’t know, seem like you could definitely be a ladies man at school.”

Darren shook his head, smiling faintly. “Listen…this is too big of a conversation for us to be having out here in the woods, especially when we have dinner to be going to….”He trailed off, leaning in to Chris again.

Chris hummed faintly when Darren’s lips were on his again. He felt Darren’s warm hands on his cheeks as they kissed. Chris’s stomach felt like it was flip-flopping as he let himself lean into Darren, kissing back gently, his hands resting on his bare arms. Before long though, Darren was pulling back again, breathing softly and smiling at Chris.

“Just to let you know….whatever I am, it isn’t straight,” Darren murmured with a soft chuckle. “Now come on, I’m starving!” He went to grab his tee shirt, pulling it on and walking towards the path that would lead back to the mess hall.

Chris blinked a few times as he processes the thoughts and feelings running through him before his feet got the message that they needed to get moving. He got his own shirt and slipped it on before he followed after Darren.

He wondered to himself if Darren was just playing with him, or if he was serious. If he wasn’t straight, did that mean that maybe he liked Chris too?

Chris knew one thing- he sure as hell kissed like he liked him.

—

Chris and Darren ate their dinner mostly in silence, only sharing a few offhand comments about the food and how they hoped tomorrow wouldn’t be as hot. Every now and then, one of them would catch the other’s eye and they would both end up blushing, their eyes falling to their plates.

That night, there were not any camp or group meetings to go to. So, after dinner, everyone had plenty of free time for the evening. A lot of people still chose to group up and go to one of the bonfires that the camp leaders started a few nights a week. Darren and Chris, however, decided to go back to their cabin.

Chris laid back on his bed, sighing a little and closing his eyes. He had a lot going through his mind, and he couldn’t help replaying the day’s events over and over in his mind. His thoughts were interrupted when he felt the bed near his legs dip down. He opened his eyes, looking up to find Darren looking down at him, a small smile on his lips.

“Can we talk?” Darren asked softly, a hopeful look in his eyes.

“Sure,” Chris murmured, smiling a little nervously as he propped up against his headboard. “About what?”

Darren chuckled a little. “I’m pretty sure you can figure that out…”

Chris laughed slightly, blushing. “Yeah, I figured…”

Darren breathed out softly. “So uh….we dropped our conversation earlier because…well, I think it’s too big of a topic for us to be discussing out in the open, especially when we have somewhere to be.”

“Well…what exactly did you want to discuss?” Chris questioned.

After sighing quietly, Darren looked over at him again. “We left off on talking about, you know, what makes someone seem gay or not, right?”

Chris nodded in agreement. “And you said…whatever you are, it isn’t straight. Which was kind of…”

“Confusing,” Darren filled in for him with a soft chuckle, smiling. “I know. Don’t worry, I thought it was confusing to begin with. But I guess I should ask….what all sexualities do you know about?”

Chris raised his eyebrows before furrowing them slightly. “Well…gay, straight, bi…” He trailed off, shrugging a little. “I mean…I know there are others but…I don’t really know anyone who really claims anything else.”

“Well…you’re looking at someone who does,” Darren said with a small shrug, smiling faintly.

“Really? What do you consider your…sexuality to be then?” He asked with careful curiosity.

“Right now, I consider myself to be pansexual. Have you heard of that?”

Chris raised his eyebrows, shaking his head slightly. “Uh…not really, no.”

Darren chuckled softly and smiled. “That’s okay, I don’t think it’s a very well-known sexuality yet. Basically…I’m attracted to anyone, regardless of their gender. Well, I mean, not anyone you know. But…how someone identifies doesn’t really define whether or not I’ll be attracted to them. I’d rather love someone for seeing them as attractive and thinking they have a great personality, rather than loving them for what gender they are.”

“Wow that’s…a little complicated,” he laughed softly and smiled a little. “But really…I don’t really know what word I’m looking for. It’s really…nice. That you consider how a person actually is not just…how they look or what parts they have or how they identify.”

Darren nodded and smiled. “I know it’s sort of a lot to take in, but…thank you for listening. And being understanding.”

Chris nodded as well, shifting so he was sitting closer to Darren. “I try to be as understanding as possible about things, even if I don’t fully understand them or identify the same. I’m really glad you told me.”

“I’m glad I did too,” Darren murmured. “And now we should probably talk about…you know…what happened earlier.”

Chris felt himself starting to blush. He bit his lip and nodded. “That was uh, definitely a shock,” he said with a small laugh. “Not a bad shock, of course but um…it was unexpected.”

“It was unexpected for me too. I mean, it’s not like I was just planning that all day or anything it just sort of…happened…” Darren said softly, shrugging a little.

“So you hadn’t…thought about it before?” Chris questioned.

It was Darren’s turn to blush at hearing that question. He laughed a little and replied,” Oh no…I thought about it several times before but…earlier was just sort of a split-second decision.”

“I see…”Chris murmured, smiling faintly. They were quiet for a few moments, looking at each other, then down at at their laps. “So…what does this, um…make us?”

Darren raised his eyebrows, looking up at Chris. “Well, I….I hadn’t really thought about it. We don’t…have to put a label on it or anything, do we?”

Chris thought about it for a moment. He had never had a boyfriend before…and the idea of possibly having one was pretty exciting (and a little nerve-wracking). But…if Darren didn’t want to put a label on it, did he not want them to be boyfriends? Or was he maybe nervous that Chris would say no?

“No…we don’t have to…”Chris said with a small smile. “But does that mean we may uh…kiss again?” He asked a little shyly.

Darren chuckled quietly and smiled a little, leaning into Chris, placing a soft kiss on his lips. “Anytime you ask,” Darren murmured with a small grin, leaning in to kiss him again.

Chris could definitely get used to this.

—

As their time at camp went on, Darren and Chris spent most of their free time sneaking off to their cabin, sharing a bed and kisses into the late hours until they drifted off to sleep. They still attended activities as they were supposed to, but they were constantly wishing time would hurry along so they could be together and not worry about getting in trouble for hand-holding or kissing. As Darren had said, camp relationships were generally frowned upon- although they were definitely bound to happen.

With only a few weeks left of camp, the two were trying not to think about being separated. Chris didn’t know if Darren felt the same or not but…well, he didn’t know for sure…but it really felt like love to him. Maybe puppy love, but it was love all the same. Chris wondered, as he and Darren lay in bed that night, just how Darren felt about him. They had spent nearly two months together. In that short period of time, had Darren’s feelings developed for Chris as Chris’ had for Darren? With a soft sigh, Chris snuggled in closer to Darren, falling asleep and wishing things could seem a little more simple for once.

—

“An overnight camping trip?” Darren murmured.

Chris raised his head, having been focused on eating, and saw Darren staring at something behind him. He turned and found a nearby poster on the wall advertising an overnight camping trip. The trip was a first-come, first-served thing, although they would offer several nights of the event. The campers would ride out on horses and camp overnight, then ride back the next morning.

“Is that something you’d like to do?” Chris asked.

Darren smiled, nodding. “Yeah, that sounds really great. I’ve never went on an overnight horseback riding camping trip before. So definitely yes. As long as I get to share my tent with you…” Darren finished his statement with a grin, waggling his eyebrows at Chris.

Chris laughed and blushed, shaking his head. “Of course. Who else would I even want to share a tent with?”

“I don’t know, I’ve seen the way you look at our horseback riding leader, Matthew…”

Chris gasped in mock offense. “Well well…if that’s how you think I feel, then maybe I’ll just see how he feels about sharing a tent with me…”He trailed off with a smirk.

“You would not,” Darren said with a laugh.

“I don’t know….I mean, he’s definitely handsome…and have you seen those muscles?”

“Chris….” Darren practically whined, pouting at him.

Chris laughed and smiled, nudging his foot against Darren’s under the table. “You know I’m just kidding. The poster says that there are limited spots, so we better get signed up soon right?”

Darren nodded in agreement and, once they were finished eating, the two got up to go sign up for the camping trip. Many people had already signed up, so Darren and Chris managed to get their names under the third chance for the trip, which meant they would be leaving out on Friday. Along with signing up they took a pamphlet, which told them where they would be riding to, what to bring, and how they would all need to attend a mandatory meeting. As the pamphlet said, the meeting would be crucial for getting all the necessary information and for practice with pitching a tent and brushing up on horseback riding.

The meeting was, as Chris had figured it would be, highly unnecessary. Pitching a tent was all about following directions and simple logic. Everyone interested in the horseback riding trip had already brushed up on their horseback riding skills. And they didn’t really need to be told not to bring all of their stuff with them on the trip.

When the meeting was over, everyone went on their separate ways back to their cabins, as it was already close to nine.

“I can’t believe they wasted everyone’s time with that,” Darren said with a chuckle. “Other than those two guys who could not figure out how to pitch the tent at all.”

Chris laughed and shook his head, going into their cabin after Darren. “I know, right? Like, I’ve only pitched a tent a time or two but…really, they gave us directions.”

“Good thing we won’t have to worry about them helping to pitch our tent, huh?” Darren murmured with a smile, sliding closer to Chris as he shut the door. “So…what are we going to do with the rest of our night?” He asked, waggling his eyebrows slightly.

Chris giggled softly and smiled, giving a small shrug. “Oh, I don’t know…have any ideas?” He asked as he walked towards his chest of drawers, getting out some pajamas. “How about we snuggle in bed and figure it out?”

After changing into their pajamas, Chris and Darren slid into one of their beds, used to the closeness and warmth they shared each night.

“I’m really excited about the overnight camping trip,” Chris murmured. “I mean, oh, this is going to sound ridiculous.”

Darren laughed softly and smiled, his fingers trailing gently through Chris’s hair. “I’m sure it won’t. What were you going to say?”

Chris sighed a little. “I was going to say it makes me think of Brokeback Mountain…”

Darren laughed harder, burying his face into the pillow.

“Hey! You said it wouldn’t sound ridiculous,” Chris whined softly.

Darren made a soft noise, his fingers stroking down over his cheek. “It’s not ridiculous, it was just a little unexpected but…yeah, I guess you’re right.”

“You know, minus some things…” Chris murmured.

“Like what?” Darren asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Oh well, uh…some things happened in that tent you know…” Chris mumbled, blushing slightly.

“Oh I know, I’ve seen it,” Darren said with a small laugh, pecking Chris’s lips. “Something definitely went down in that tent.”

Chris shook his head and smiled, leaning in to press a harder kiss against Darren’s lips. Darren responded with a soft hum, kissing him back slowly.

Chris wondered what it would be like to go farther than they had. They had kissed, letting their hands roam over their nearly-naked bodies, only underwear hanging off their hips. A few times, things had gotten a little heated, their hips slotting together to rub their hard-ons together. To begin with, they were both a little embarrassed afterwards, but they both agreed that it had felt good.

Now they’re bodies just seemed to attract together like magnets, inching closer as they kissed until their warm bodies pressed and rubbed together, hands sliding over their sides and through their hair.

“Chris…” Darren mumbled against his lips, his hips grinding slowly against Chris’s. “I want to touch…”

“Touch?” Chris murmured, his mind taking a few moments to process before he was flushing anew down to his chest. “O-Oh…. you can, if you want to…”

Darren breathed out softly as he kissed at Chris’s jaw. “I do, I want to…” he whispered, his hand moving down to rub slowly over Chris’s crotch.

Chris whimpered softly, his fingers trailing through Darren’s hair, twisting gently in his curls as Darren’s hand slowly slid into his underwear. He moaned softly as he felt Darren’s fingers wrap around his cock, pumping slowly.

“This is okay?” Darren asked quietly, bumping his nose against Chris’s

Chris nodded, licking over his lips. “Yeah…definitely okay…”He murmured. “Can I….I want to touch too…”

“Yes, please…” Darren whispered.

Chris paused a moment, his hand resting on Darren’s stomach. “It’d probably be easier if we, um…lost the underwear?” he suggested softly, knowing his face was red mostly from arousal, but also from embarrassment.

Darren smiled and nodded, already starting to wiggle out of his own underwear. Chris let his eyes wander in the dim light, the room only being lit by a small lamp and the moonlight. Darren was the first guy that he got to see completely naked, and he just wanted to take a few moments to take it all in.

“My eyes are up here,” Darren whispered teasingly, causing Chris’s head to snap up before he shyly looked away.

“Sorry you’re just…incredible,” Chris murmured, letting his eyes return to Darren’s body. He took in his lightly toned arms and legs, where muscles were becoming more apparent by the day. His eyes trailed over his easily tanned skin. While Chris was actually sporting a bit of a tan for once, Darren’s complex was still fairly darker. A dusting of hair trailed down along his stomach, ending just above his cock. Chris averted his eyes, looking back up at Darren with a shy smile.

“It’s your turn now,” Darren murmured and smiled, leaning in to kiss Chris as he helped him out of his underwear, letting his eyes wander as well.

“My eyes are up here,” Chris murmured mockingly with a smile, watching Darren’s head jerk up. Darren flashed him a grin before he was leaning in to kiss him again, his hand slowly trailing down along his stomach before he wrapped his fingers around his cock, stroking slowly.

Chris moaned softly, his eyes falling closed a few moments before he blinked them open, his own hand wandering down to Darren’s member, his fingers closing around and stroking over it. He grinned a little at Darren’s immediate moan and continued moving his hand, finding it a little difficult to focus on pleasing Darren while Darren’s hand was on his cock.

The two found a rhythm with each other, hands moving at a similar pace and hips grinding upwards.

“I’m close,” Darren breathed out against Chris’s lips, their noses bumping together.

Chris nodded slightly, tightening his hand around Darren’s cock.

Darren whined lowly, letting out a gasp as he came over Chris’s hand. He lost his own rhythm of moving his hand over Chris’s length, but after a few moments of recovery, his hand tightened, stroking Chris through his own orgasm.

The two lay together, their heavy breathing loud in the otherwise-silent cabin. Chris opened his eyes, finding that Darren was already looking at him with a blissful, tired expression. He smiled gently and shifted forward, pressing a soft kiss to Darren’s lips before he pulled back.

“We should shower,” he murmured. Darren nodded in response and moved off of the bed, waiting for Chris to shower.

They took a hot, leisurely shower, taking their time in helping each other wash their hair and bodies. Their eyes trailed shyly over each other as they kept their touches light and gentle. It amused Chris to think that they had just gotten each other off, yet they were both obviously trying hard to keep their eyes above each other’s waists.

After showering the boys got on their underwear and returned to bed. Their touches remained gentle as their fingers trailed through dampened hair and over warm chests and arms. They smiled at one another, quietly looking at each other in the dim lighting.

Chris watched Darren’s eyes slowly flickering closed, chuckling quietly as he watched him try to fight sleep.

“If you’re tired, sleep,” Chris murmured gently, pressing a soft kiss to Darren’s forehead, smiling at the soft noise he made in response.

“M’kay…” Darren mumbled, yawning a little and snuggling into Chris.

“Goodnight, Darren…” he said softly, arms wrapping around Darren’s waist to spoon him as they got settled in bed.

“Night, Chris…love you…” Darren replied drowsily, his face nuzzling into his pillow.

Chris’s eyebrows shot up and he felt his face flush. He couldn’t have heard what he thought he had. Or if he did…Darren just meant it in a friendly way…

Or did he?

—

Chris had always heard that whenever you started having sex, it would become sort of addictive. Well…wherever he had heard it from, it didn’t seem to be wrong. And he and Darren hadn’t even had “actual” sex. But everything else, well…was definitely happening.

Chris found that he loved the feeling of Darren stroking his dick, his fingers slightly calloused and always so warm. He didn’t mind a bit of frottage either, desperately rubbing against one another until they came, sweating and shaky.

But, he had to admit, blowjobs were definitely his new favorite thing. Especially the morning that Darren woke him up that way, his mouth hot and wet where it surrounded Chris’s cock. He would normally say he had pretty good stamina, but that morning, it didn’t take much until he was coming down Darren’s throat.

He returned the favor for Darren later that day after a full day of activities and plenty of lustful stares shared between them. They barely got the door shut before Chris had Darren pushed up against the wall, drawing a moan out of Darren as their mouths hungrily moved together. Before long, Chris was on his knees, hastily tugging off Darren’s shorts and underwear.

Chris hoped that no one happened to be walking by their cabin around that time, because Darren definitely wasn’t quiet when it came to voicing his appreciation of Chris’s mouth.

The two chose to focus on the time they were enjoying and the experiences they were getting to have, rather than think about the days that were quickly dwindling down, leaving them with only a couple of more weeks together. Chris didn’t want to dwell on what would happen once they went their separate ways.

Luckily though, the last weeks of camp were always a busy time. There would be dancing, bonfires, skits, team games, water fights…and of course, the overnight camping trip.

Friday came in what seemed like the blink of an eye. Most campers went about their usual routines, as did Chris and Darren during the morning hours. By late afternoon, the campers that were going on the overnight trip were being summoned to the mess hall to make sure they had everything ready to go.

Once everyone and everything was accounted for, the group made their way to the stables to get paired with their horses.

“I would get paired with Buck,” Darren grumbled as they walked to the tack room to get the grooming brushes, saddles, and reins.

Chris giggled softly and smiled. “Aw come on, Buck isn’t that bad.”

“He’s tried to bite me three times, and one of those times he wasn’t even the horse I was riding!” Darren said, shaking his head as he grabbed up one of the brush buckets.

“Just make sure you’re extra nice to him and give him some treats and you should be fine,” Chris said.

“You’re lucky you got paired with Lady. She’s so well-behaved. Buck is just an asshole,” Darren complained.

“Hey, don’t let him hear you say that,” Chris warned. “Or he might just live up to his name.”

“I don’t even want to think about that. Being bitten is enough,” Darren said with a laugh, pecking Chris’s cheek. “Now go get tacked up.”

The two went to their separate stalls to get their horses all tacked up before leading them outdoors. Everyone participated in the short training session, making sure they all knew how to get their horses to stop, speed up, and turn. Before long they were all lined up, with one of the camp leaders in the front and one in the back.

The horses walked along the path, the thudding of their hooves echoing softly amongst the trees. The campers were mostly silent, making some small talk with whoever was in front of or behind them. Occasionally the camp leaders would point out important parts of or near the path; an upcoming stream, low-hanging branches, the lake. They told a few stories along the way as well about campers that had gotten lost in the woods, wild animals that had roamed through the camp, and unexpected storms. These stories didn’t really put Chris at ease about the fact that they would be sleeping in flimsy tents overnight.

“How are you doing back there?” Chris asked, throwing a glance back at Darren, who was the last person in front of the camp leader.

“Oh, I’m fine,” Darren replied with a small chuckle. “Someone is actually behaving himself for once…well, besides the few times he’s been reaching for grass.”

“You’re lucky that’s all he’s been reaching for,” Chris snickered softly.

Darren rolled his eyes and shook his head. “He better not even try anything,”He murmured, leaning down to pat Buck’s neck. “I swear, he can be such an as-ah!”

Darren was cut off, yelling as he was suddenly bucked off. Not only was he bucked off, but he landed right in a wide, shallow creek that they were passing over.

“Everyone stop!” The camp leader from the back called, halting his horse. The rest of the group brought their own horses to a stop and the camp leader from the front brought her horse trotting towards the back.

Darren’s pants and part of his shirt was soaked, and he knew he would probably end up bruised from the fall.

“Darren! Are you okay?” Chris asked after he had his own horse stopped, sliding off and holding her reins.

Darren nodded slightly, letting the camp leaders help him up from the creek. His jeans were already clinging to him uncomfortably, but he knew he would just have to live with it- he didn’t want to hold the group back while he changed.

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” he said, shaking his head a little. “I guess it’s what I get.”

“He finally lived up to his name, at least,” Chris said with a soft chuckle, grinning at the look Darren gave him.

“Well, if you’re feeling alright Darren, how about we get a move on?” One of the camp leaders asked, holding on to both her horse’s reins and Buck’s.

He nodded, sighing as he reached for Buck’s reins, giving him a side-eyed look. “Is there any way we could…trade?”

—

Once Darren was on the camp leader’s (much nicer) horse, the group started out again. This time, on the much wider path, they were allowed to walk two horses side by side. Chris and Darren’s horses fell into stride next to each other, their hooves plodding along the soft earth.

“Well, this has already been a fun adventure, huh?” Chris asked, laughing quietly as he looked over at Darren.

Darren rolled his eyes, chuckling quietly. “Yeah yeah, I’m glad everyone got a kick out of my misery.”

“Hey, at least he didn’t bite you again, right?” Chris teased with a grin.

“He did mix it up, I’ll give him that,” Darren muttered, shaking his head.

The two fell into silence, taking in their peaceful surroundings.

“How much farther do you think it is until we get to the campsite?” Chris asked after a little while.

Darren glanced at his watch, humming quietly. “Probably not too much farther.”

“Not much farther at all,” the camp leader behind them piped in. “Just up this hill and we’ll be there.”

“Good, I’m starving,” Darren sighed.

“When are you not?” Chris murmured with a soft chuckle, smiling. “Then again, when am I not either?”

“Don’t worry, we’ll be having dinner once our tents and everything are all set up,” the camp leader explained.

Once the group had made it up the hill, Chris was amazed by the view they were greeted with. Their campsite for the night was at the top of a flat hill that overlooked miles upon miles of forests.

“Wow…so this is what our camp looks like from high up…mostly just trees,” Darren murmured.

Chris nodded in agreement. “I guess I never realized how dense the forest actually is but…so it is.”

“Alright campers,” one of the leaders announced, sliding off of her horse. “How about we get everything all set up so we can have some dinner?”

The campers got off of their own horses and went to untack them and release them into the fenced in meadow just down the hill. Once the horses had been taken care of and the tents had been set up, everyone was definitely ready for dinner.

Dinner for the evening consisted of hot dogs and beans, which Chris thought seemed more delicious than usual (though maybe he just thought cooking them over an open flame seemed all the more authentic).

The campers enjoyed their dinner around the fire, sharing stories and getting to know one another better, which was much nicer to do in a relaxed and unstructured environment than during all the put together camp activities. The camp leaders gave them some space, talking with each other near their own fire a bit away.

“So…are you two like, a thing?” Aaron, a shaggy blonde haired boy asked, raising an eyebrow Darren and Chris’ way.

Chris’s own eyebrows rose and his cheeks reddened slightly. He looked over at Darren, unsure what to say. Neither of them had ever really officially came out to anyone at camp…this was as good as a time as any, right?

“Aaron! You don’t just ask shit like that,” Melanie, a brunette with large, glasses-rimmed eyes said.

“It’s fine, Melanie. He can ask,” Darren said, waving his hand slightly. “We…are, actually.”

Chris glanced around the group, noting that no one looked too surprised.

“Why haven’t either of you said anything?” Aaron asked, quirking an eyebrow.

The two both shrugged, sharing a glance before Chris said, “I guess we were both just afraid of what everyone would think.”

“Well, you guys didn’t do a great job at hiding it, honestly,” Jeremy, a well-muscled and slightly intimidating guy piped up. “I mean…guys don’t just look at each other the way you two do.”

“Are we really that obvious?” Darren asked, laughing when he was met with a chorus of ‘yes’s from the other campers.

“Well…” Chris murmured, sliding a little closer to Darren, resting his hand on his leg. “That was a lot easier than I thought it would be.”

The conversation moved on to discuss hometowns and school and the future. No one gave Darren and Chris weird looks as their hands slid together, fingers twining as they sat close to one another. For once, Chris just felt…normal.

—-

One by one the campers trickled away, retiring to their tents for the night. Chris had no idea what time it was, but with the moon high in the sky and the contagious yawns making their way around the campfire, he knew it had to be late.

“I think I’m going to head to the tent,” Darren said, stifling his own yawn. “You coming?”

Chris let Darren help him up off the ground, saying his goodbyes to the few remaining campers before they walking to their tent together.

“I can’t believe everyone handled that so well,” Chris murmured as he snuggled under his unzipped sleeping bag, shifting close to Darren.

“I can. I mean…where I’m from, it isn’t really that big of a deal. But I understand that it’s a big thing for you. And I’m glad everyone did handle it well,” Darren replied softly, smiling as he curled in close to Chris.

The two remained quiet for some time. Darren thought that Chris had fallen asleep until he blurted, “Have you thought about having sex? Like, actual sex you know?”

Darren blinked open his eyes, shifting back slightly to look up at Chris. Even in the dim light, he could tell that his pale skin was tinged red.

“In general or…with you?” Darren questioned.

“Uh…with me,” Chris replied quietly.

“Well…yeah,” Darren said softly, shrugging a little. “I mean…I have. And I want to…if you’re going to ask that next.”

“Right now?” Chris asked, raising his eyebrows in alarm.

“No no no,” Darren said with a soft laugh, shaking his head, stroking his hand gently over Chris’s cheek. “I mean, would I want to? Yeah. But…well, we don’t really have what we need, for one thing. And I don’t want to push you into anything.”

Chris smiled a little, pecking Darren’s lips as he wrapped his arms around his neck, pulling him gently closer. “Have I ever told you how sweet you are?”

“You might have mentioned it,” Darren said with a soft chuckle, pecking his lips back.

“I’m sorry that was so…out of the blue. I was just…thinking about how little time we have left…” Chris murmured.

“Let’s not think about that,” Darren whispered, carding his fingers through Chris’s hair. “We still have a little while. And just because we leave here doesn’t mean we won’t stay in touch. You have my number and I’ll give you my address, my email…you can look me up on facebook…we’ll stay in touch.”

“Promise?” Chris asked quietly, fingers skimming along Darren’s arm before they gripped there gently, as if holding on to him now would prevent him from leaving later.

“Promise,” Darren replied, pressing a kiss to Chris’s forehead before the two of them drifted off to sleep, silent but not so much peaceful.

—

After breakfast, the campers packed up their things before heading back towards camp. Most of the ride was silent- perhaps everyone was simply enjoying the day. Darren and Chris, however, had a lot on their minds. What would going home mean for their relationship? When would they get to see each other again? Would they actually keep in contact?

Once they arrived back at camp and got their horses untacked, the campers went their separate ways, returning back to their average days of camp for the last week.

For their last week, Darren and Chris went about their usual routine of sticking side by side during activities, eating, and free time. They seemed to be more reserved though- not as quick to kiss or touch anymore, too lost in their thoughts and worries of seeing and talking to each other.

Before they knew it, it was the last night of camp. The campers had been told to bring along one formal outfit, but they had never been told for what. On the last night, they were instructed to put on their formal outfit and meet at the mess hall for an all-camp activity.

Darren and Chris dressed, the former wearing a black tux and red bowtie while the latter wore a black tux and red tie. If people didn’t think they were a couple before, they definitely would now. Not only were they matching but they walked into the mess hall holding hands, determined to make the best of their last night together.

The mess hall was all decked out in silver and blue decorations- balloons, confetti, and streamers littered the building.

“What is this, prom?” Darren asked, raising his eyebrows as they walked inside. He noticed a banner hanging above the stage that read, ‘End of Camp Celebration’ and nodded to himself.

“May as well be prom,” Chris said with a soft laugh, walking farther inside, noting that most of the campers were already there and dancing to the music that blasted through the speakers set up on stage.

“Do you like dancing?” Darren asked.

“I’m not particularly good at it but…I like it, yeah,” Chris said with a shrug, smiling as he pulled on his hand to tug him towards the dance floor. He didn’t want to focus on his insecurities tonight- he just wanted to enjoy his time with Darren.

When Chris put the thought of people thinking he looked silly out of his mind and only focused on Darren, he found himself having a great time.

Most of the dance they played fast songs, but they did happen to play a few slow songs during the night. The first time, Darren dipped low, offering his hand to Chris for a dance. They held each other close, Darren’s hands resting on Chris’s waist while Chris’s arms wrapped around his neck, fingers twirling gently in the back of his curls. They swayed more than anything, lost in the idea that they only had eyes for each other in this room full of people.

When the dance was over, Darren and Chris walked back with each other to their cabin, retiring to their shared bed for the last night. Some probably would have thought them crazy for spending their last night together only kissing and cuddling, but it was how Chris wanted to remember Darren the most- sweet, loving, and his.

Chris was nearly asleep, when he heard a soft, “I love you,” whispered into his ear.

Even though he was tired, his heart still leaped at the omission, making the organ beat quickly.

“I love you too…” he replied softly, holding Darren closer as the two of them drifted off, both of them choosing to put the thought of tomorrow out of their heads.

—

“I just want to say a big thank you to all our camp leaders, as well as our campers for making this summer so great!” Ms. Cromwell said from the stage during her annual farewell speech. “We hope this summer has been one of the best of your life. We would love it so much if you return another year, either as a camper or camp leader.” She paused in her speech a moment, surveying the crowd. “You know, the people who do not have the opportunity to attend camp are really missing out. Not only does camp provide you with a safe outlet of fun during the summer, but it also helps you learn new skills and build new friendships.”

“Or more than friendships,” Aaron teased from where he sat next to Darren.

“I know that’s right,” Melanie murmured with a soft laugh from where she sat next to Chris.

After getting to know each other better on the camping trip, the four had become closer, spending a lot of their activity time together.

“Hush, both of you,” Chris said with a laugh, rolling his eyes and waving his hand slightly.

“We are sad to see you all go, but we know you are going with new knowledge. We look forward to seeing you another year!”

At the end of Ms. Cromwell’s speech, everyone clapped before getting up to go gather their suitcases before their parents and guardians arrived. Darren and Chris walked to their cabin, quietly gathering up their things before they walked towards the main entrance where their parents would be picking them up.

“Chris!”

Chris turned at the sound of his mom’s voice, running to meet her, sighing at the feeling of being wrapped up in his mother’s arms again.

“I missed you so much, honey. Did you have a good time this summer?” She asked, pulling away and smiling.

Chris nodded and smiled, leaning in for another hug. “Yeah, this summer was…so much better than I thought it would be.”

“Oh really? And why’s that?”

Chris grinned shyly, glancing behind him and motioning over Darren. “Mom, this is Darren…my boyfriend.”

His mom’s eyebrows shot up before her face broke into a grin and she reached towards Darren for a hug.

Darren raised his own eyebrows before smiling, learning in to hug her back. “It’s nice to meet you Mrs. Colfer.”

“Oh honey, just call me Karyn,” she said as she pulled away, smiling. “You are just so adorable.”

Darren laughed a little, his cheeks heating up slightly. “Oh uh, thank you.”

“Darren!”

Darren’s head turned when he heard his own mother calling and grinned, jogging over to her. “Hi Mama. I missed you.”

“Oh sweetie, I missed you too,” she said, hugging him and patting his back. “Did you have a nice summer?”

“I did, I did. I have someone I want you to meet, actually…” Darren took her hand, leading her towards Chris and Karyn. “Mom, this is Chris. He’s my boyfriend.”

“Ooh, a boyfriend! I let you go to summer camp to make friends and you make a boyfriend!” She clicked her tongue softly and smiled, shaking her head. “I am not surprised.”

The four laughed, exchanging names and hugs. The moms got to talking, giving Chris and Darren time to talk amongst themselves.

“We need to be going, honey,” Karyn said, patting Chris on the shoulder. “But we don’t live too terribly far from each other. So maybe we can plan a visit soon?” She suggested.

“That would be really great,” Chris murmured and smiled, nodding.

“I’m going to go get the car started,” Cerina, Darren’s mother, said. “You come along soon sweetie.”

“I will mom,” he said, pecking her cheek before she walked towards the car.

“I’ll do the same. Don’t be too long,” Karyn said, walking off towards the car.

The two watched their mothers walk away, standing quietly, unsure of what to say.

“Well…I guess this is goodbye,” Chris murmured softly.

“No. Not goodbye,” Darren said, shaking his head. “Just…see you later?”

Chris smiled a little and nodded. “Yeah…see you later,” He murmured, leaning in to hug Darren.

Chris wasn’t sure how long they stood there hugging, just lost in Darren’s embrace. They pulled away from each other, their lips automatically finding each other within a moment.

When they pulled away they were both teary eyed, smiling faintly at each other.

“I’ll see you later, Chris,” Darren said, picking up his bag and waving slightly as he walked towards his car.

“See you later, Dare…” he replied softly, giving him a small wave as he walked towards his own car, feeling his heart breaking with every step he took.

—

The time they spent apart wasn’t as bad as either of them had imagined. They texted and skyped constantly, sent cute little cards and packages to each other, and started planning a trip to see each other again.

Months passed before they were able to meet in person again, but what a happy reunion it was. Not only did they get to spend time together again, but they had agreed to wait to open their college letters together.

Chris had never really considered what college he wanted to go to. All he knew was that he really wanted to be writing to be a part of his future. So when Darren said his heart was set on University of Michigan…well, Chris put some research into it and found that they had an excellent English and writing program before he sent off his own application for the university.

“Who’s going to go first?” Chris asked, bouncing a little in his seat.

“How about we open them together?” Darren suggested, to which Chris nodded. “Okay, on the count of three…one…two…”

“Three!” Chris finished, tearing into his own letter.

The two sat silently, reading over their letters, eyes flickering up towards the other to catch a glimpse of their reaction towards their letter.

“So?” Darren asked softly.

Chris swallowed, glancing up at him as a grin slowly took over his face. “I…I got in.”

Darren’s own grin broke out over his face. “I got in too! We got in together, Chris!”

Chris let out a happy noise, the two leaning in to hug each other tightly.

“Too bad we still have nearly half a year left before we’ve graduated high school…then we have the summer before we actually get to go off to college, “Chris murmured.

“Yeah, but…just think about when we actually get to college…we’ll get to see each other every day, we’ll get to be studying the things we love…” Darren trailed off, smiling.

Chris nodded, hugging him again. “I love how positive you are…”

“I try,” Darren murmured with a shrug, hugging him back, wishing he never had to let go. But for Chris, he would stay positive.

—

Over the next months, so much happened- graduation, summer jobs, buying new clothes and supplies and household items for college. 

Chris’s snapchat was filled with photos and videos of Darren about to walk across the stage, being a bored sales associate, trying on new clothes, and seeing how much he could possibly fit in one cart. He couldn’t wait until the moment he could actually be a part of these things in person with Darren.

And luckily, he would be able to be with him soon. College started only in a few days and it was move-in day for the incoming freshmen. Upperclassmen dressed in gold and blue dotted the campus, helping the underclassmen move into their dorms and direct them to where they needed to go.

Chris helped to unload his things from the car, barely even eyeing the well-muscled and handsome guys that helped him with carrying his things. None of these people were the guy he wanted to see.

“Chris!”

Chris turned his head when his name was called, grinning when he saw Darren jogging towards him, already donning a Michigan shirt. The two embraced and Chris let out a happy noise before pulling away.

“Hey, as much as I’ve missed you, we’ll have plenty of time to catch up after we get everything moved in,” Chris said with a smile.

Darren nodded in agreement, chuckling softly. “Well, my things are already moved in, so let me help you with yours.”

Chris and Darren led the way to their shared dorm, the upperclassmen and their parents following after them, luggage and school supplies in tow. Once everything was put in the room, the upperclassmen were off to help the other freshmen, leaving the boys and their parents to unpack their things.

The Colfer and Criss families got to work, folding clothes, hanging up posters, and making up beds. With all of them working, the unpacking process didn’t take too great of a time. Chris breathed a sigh of relief as he looked around the room, decorated and stocked full of Chris and Darren’s things.

“Well boys, I think that’s all we can do for you. The studies and such are up to you,” Darren’s father said, giving him a pat on the shoulder. “We should get heading back, give you guys some time to catch up and get ready for school on Monday.”

The other parents nodded their heads in agreement, though they didn’t look like they really wanted to leave.

Chris felt a lump beginning to form in his throat, restricting his airway. He didn’t want to say goodbye to his family. But it was just see you later, right?

After hugs and kisses and tears, Darren and Chris were both waving goodbye to their families, watching them drive away from the campus, leaving the two to begin their time at college. It was the first time either of them had really been independent, had really been without family support. While the thought of that was scary, it was also really exciting- especially because they had each other to rely on.

“Let’s get this new chapter started,” Darren said softly as he looked over at Chris, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

Chris smiled, watching the way Darren’s honey eyes lit up in the sinking sun. He was so grateful that he had such a wonderful person to start this time with. And hopefully, he’d be in all the other chapters beyond.

“Let’s,” he agreed softly with a smile, squeezing his hand back as they turned, walking towards their dorm as the sun set over the buildings, seeming to say goodbye to the old and hello to the new.


End file.
